Off the Record: Rugby League Rumours and Gossip #176

Ray Mour 14 Aug 2019 11:50 AM

Who is the frontrunner for the St Helens job? Which Hull forward is attracting Championship interest? Who is interested in the Oldham vacancy? Ray Mour has all the gossip…

Frontrunner for St Helens job

Jason Demetriou is the favourite to land the St Helens job from the 2020 season.

Just in case you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last couple of months – Justin Holbrook will leave his role as St Helens boss to become Gold Coast Titans’ new head coach on a two-year contract from 2020. There are a number of contenders for the vacancy at Saints such as Kristian Woolf, Darren Fairleigh and Paul Wellens – but Demetriou is leading the race. He is currently Wayne Bennett’s assistant at South Sydney Rabbitohs.

Salford interview Naylor

Salford Red Devils have interviewed Scott Naylor as they seek to bring in a new assistant coach for Ian Watson.

We reported in last week’s gossip column that the Red Devils were looking at Naylor as a replacement for Martin Gleeson, who left the club earlier this year to take up an offer in rugby union. We can confirm that Naylor has been interviewed over the vacancy. Last week, Oldham announced that Naylor will leave his post as head coach of the League 1 club at the end of the season. However, the trade papers have linked ex-Toronto and Leigh coach Paul Rowley with the assistant coaching job at Salford.

NRL forward eyeing Super League switch

Newcastle Knights forward James Gavet is looking to secure a three-year deal on big money in England to end his career, according to well-respected Australian journalist, The Mole.

The Samoa international has played 18 games in his first season with the Knights and is under contract for next year, but The Mole suggests that at 29, Gavet is considering a move to Super League on a large salary contract which will see him finish his career in the UK. He has earned two caps for Samoa and has made 74 NRL appearances to date.

Hull forward attracting interest

Hull FC prop Levy Nzoungou is attracting plenty of interest from clubs in the Championship.

The Frenchman arrived at the Airlie Birds ahead of this season from Salford Red Devils but has found chances hard to come by under coach Lee Radford, making just one appearance in the Black and White jersey. Hull Live claim he is looking for options elsewhere because his contract expires at the season’s end and we understand several Championship clubs, including one full-time team, are chasing his signature.

Grady and Kilshaw interested in Oldham job

Former North Wales Crusaders coach Mike Grady and ex-Rochdale Hornets boss Alan Kilshaw are interested in the soon-to-be vacant head coaching job at League 1 side Oldham.

As mentioned earlier in the gossip column, Oldham’s current head coach Scott Naylor will leave the club at the end of the season after seven years with the Roughyeds. Grady and Kilshaw have been out of the professional ranks for a couple of years but are still involved in the game at a lower level. It is believed they are both keen on the position from 2020.

Sponsors pull away from Salford

Mitsubishi will not be the main sponsor for Salford Red Devils next year. They have sponsored the club since 2016 but they will not be continuing their deal into 2020. The club are now asking for £60,000 to be the club’s main shirt sponsor.

In addition, Kappa will not be Salford’s kit manufacturers next season. Kappa only started manufacturing the Red Devils’ gear ahead of this term but they are poised to pull away at the end of the campaign. Salford have had four kit manufacturers in the last seven years – Under Armour, Raging Bull, Steeden and Kappa.